Hyundai Motor's Solaris named best-selling model in Russia in May

SEOUL, June 9 (Yonhap) -- Hyundai Motor Co.'s compact sedan, the Solaris, topped the list of foreign vehicle models in Russia for the second consecutive month in May, a Moscow-based trade group said Thursday.
Hyundai Motor, South Korea's leading automaker, sold 10,054 Solaris sedans in Russia last month, becoming the best-selling model there, according to the Association of European Businesses (AEB).
The South Korean automaker began selling the Solaris in early February.
Overall, Hyundai Motor sold a total of 15,266 units in Russia last month, taking the second spot in the foreign vehicle market, and its affiliate Kia Motors Corp. ranked third with a total of 14,085 units, it said.
General Motors Corp.'s Chevrolet division took the top spot with 16,805 vehicles sold in May, according to the AEB.
Renault SA of France and Nissan Motor Co. of Japan came in fourth and fifth with 13,636 units and 12,047 units, respectively.
Hyundai Motor's sales in Russia jumped 85 percent in the January-May period from a year earlier, and Kia Motors saw its sales soar 64 percent over the cited period, according to the trade group.
Hyundai Motor said earlier it expects its sales in Russia to reach around 130,000 units this year, up from last year's some 70,000 units, with its market share topping 7 percent.
sam@yna.co.kr